UNO Tech enters Malaysia, brings clinic management system

Singaporean medical technology firm UNO Technologies has entered the Malaysian market through its partnership with local pharmaceutical upstart Aetos Pharma.

The company seeks to get a slice of the pie from the increasing investments into the country's public and private healthcare system. It notes that its startup and tech ecosystem is "at the cusp of a new wave of innovation with increased interest by global [venture capitalists] and tech giants".

As part of its expansion, UNO is bringing its clinic management system product to local medical practitioners and businesses. 

UNO CMS is an end-to-end platform that digitises clinical and operational workflows. It provides accurate and up-to-date information and renders actionable data to help doctors make informed decisions. The solution also assists clinic administrators in running and optimising their business with intelligent tools and efficient processes. 

Wealth and health platform Autumn partners with dacadoo to offer digital health coaching

Singapore-based Autumn has tapped dacadoo, a provider of digital health and insurance technology, to offer digital health coaching on its wealth and health platform.

Available on both Android and iOS devices, the Autumn app assists users in managing their finances and health to be better prepared for their retirement.

Through this latest partnership, Autumn users will have round-the-clock access to a smart digital health coach and receive personalised health and wellbeing notifications, helping them "build and maintain a healthy lifestyle". 

A digital health score will be provided to help keep track of their progress; the score is updated daily according to their lifestyle, including sleep, exercise, nutrition and mental wellbeing.

"This partnership will expand Autumn’s existing offering to incorporate health considerations in the advice and recommendations provided by our app to help our users understand how health and wealth are linked. We believe that a holistic platform will ensure our users have sufficient wealth and the good health to live their best life," Autumn CEO Mike Kruger explained.

The new health services will come to Autumn users by the first quarter of next year.

New digital tool brings COVID-19-related information to whānau Māori, Māori health providers

Hāpai Te Hauora, the largest Māori public health organisation in New Zealand, has partnered with consultancy firm Atamai Digital to develop a platform bringing timely COVID-19-related information to whānau Māori and Māori health providers.

PĀ ORA is a web platform where users can access real-time information about locations of vaccination busses and pop-up vaccination and testing sites. It is built on īHono, a platform that was developed to help reconnect Māori with their communities and provide health and education services.

This online tool can also notify users about locations of interest through their emails or mobile phones.

"This project was borne out of the sheer frustration of seeing my iwi have to wait days for information to be made public when community and local health provider intel[ligence] is travelling faster, allowing us to keep pace with Delta and giving us time to send 'Kia mataara' messages out to our people," said Maria Ngāwati, research lead at Hāpai. 

"Timely, public health data needs to help inform and support the important work that is being carried out on the ground - they (health providers) need urgent IT infrastructure and funding support to amplify the mahi already being done," Atamai Digital founder Hiria Te Rangi also commented.

iQ Group Global pursuing US FDA approval for saliva-based glucose test

Australia-based iQ Group Global has announced that GBS, the licensee of its subsidiary Life Science Biosensor Diagnostics, has filed a pre-submission package with the US Food and Drug Administration for its non-invasive Glucose Salivary test.

The pre-submission aims to confirm with the FDA the clinical trial design and receive feedback as it pursues regulatory approval.

The iQ Group Global, through LSBD and its commercial unit BioSensX Global, is developing a range of diagnostic point-of-care tests, including allergen panels and a saliva-based glucose test for people with diabetes. The company intends to provide these patients with a non-invasive alternative to the most widely used finger-prick glucose tests.

Smoking cessation chatbot launched in New Zealand 

New Zealand's Health Promotion Agency has put up a chatbot on Facebook Messenger to help young adult Māori women to quit smoking.

The digital support tool sends daily messages, distractions and encouragements to users over a 30-day period. It includes facts for quitting, a smoking cost calculator, quizzes, ideas for activities besides smoking and craving countdown videos.

This smoking cessation chatbot will initially run from 18 October to 26 November. A second launch is targeted for early 2022.

Tata Health goes live in India

Tata Health, the digital health venture under Tata Industries, has recently launched to provide a platform for online doctor consultations in India.

The company, according to a news report, provides instant and 24/7 consultation services, including about COVID-19, through a network of physicians and specialists.  

Available on both Android and iOS devices, Tata Health's services are currently being offered in Bangalore.